The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1887-02-16

1 take the liberty to send you word of ex.
PLANTATION. In answer to question by
reporter, | said that pieces of one or more
broken rails lying at the side of the track
showed serious flaws and fatal structural
defects, but these were of such nature as
not to be easily detected by any ordinary
handling of the rails. As to responsibility
| do not remember whether | said anything
at that time or not, but think j remarked to
somebody that it would be very difficult to
say where the responsibility should be
placed, but probably at the rolling mill, If
anywhere. l made no statement which in
the remotest degree threw blame on the rail-
way company. / was there for scientific in
quiry as to facts, not to talk theory. As a
matter of scientific interest, brought here
to the school two fragments, weighing few
pounds each, finding them thrown aside, as
If destined for the scrap-heap. But If they
are of any use to the company of course we
have no right to them, and shall cheerfully
return them, If you so desire. Perhaps this
explanation Is unnecessary, in view of the
well understood tendency of newspaper re-
porters to gross distortion of facts but ]
have a natural desire to put myself right in
such a case"
THE Springfield Daily Union contains an
interview of its reporter with Ex-Governor
Smith, president of the Central Vermont
railroad, on heating and lighting the cars of
his road, of which the following is an ex-
tract; We begun" the governor said,
with wood stoves, those in general use
upon all New England roads, Then we
tried the Howard heater. After that we
began to use the coal stove. Objections to
this being made, we adopted the Baker and
the Spear heaters which we are still using
in the cars of our road. AS to lighting, we
began with sperm oil, then we adopted the
sperm candle. The next to appear was the
gas man. We tried his system. Our cars
were piped at great expense, but after
thorough trial that proved a failure. BY
this time the candle man had come with his
enormous sperm candles, at least two
inches in diameter. The public soon found
out that they were not getting enough and
we next tried kerosene oil of one hundred
twelve test. This frightened everybody
and we discarded that for what is called
mineral sperm oil of three hundred test,
which means that the lamps will not ex-
plode unless there is heat of three hun
dred degrees. For my part consider there
is as much danger from our lights as from
our stoves, and should be glad to substitute
anything else which will satisfy the public
and make them safe. / notice that the
newspapers say that the coal stove must go.
Will they please tell us what to put in its
place? | do not want to take it out and
freeze our passengers before there is some
thing to put in its place. Heating by steam
from the locomotive has not been sufficiently
once, but whatever can be shown is the best
and safest method will be adopted. have
always instructed the heads of departments
to use the best material and satisfy the de-
mands of the public"
Since the above was in type two reports
have come to hand concerning the number
of dead it being claimed that the actual
number is thirty-seven or thirty-eight The
Hfrnr in 1nnn I,f,-A ,nrt tn1
as official" and were supposed to be cor
rect. The bodies of Herbert A. Thayer of
Chateaugay, n. Y, Edgar Wilder of st.
Adams and Peter Blair of Warren, Mass,
were identified Saturday. On Monday the
revised lists of dead and missing stood as
follows:
Identified dead-Frank Wesson Spring
field, Mass. Edward f. Dillon Springfield,
VT; S. s. Westcott Burlington, VT; Edward
Brocklebanks, Lebanon, n. H., brakeman;
Miss Nancy Dunbar, Somerville, Mass; Ce-
phas Mills, Iroquois, Ont; A. j. Hammer,
Maiden, Mass, porter; j. H. JONES' Bos-
ton, Mass, porter; Smith Sturtevant, St.
Adams, VT, conductors ID. ID. Woodward
Waterbury, VT; Francis Flynn, Worcester,
Mass; George j. Bell, Bellows Falls, VT.
Delima Brodeau, Nashua, N. H.; Louis b.
James, New Haven, Ct; Francis Boulanger
Holyoke Mass, Anastasia Boulanger Hol-
yoke, Mass; James A. Stone, Burlington,
VT; Harry Brooks, Boston, Mass; Herbert
A. Thayer Chateaugay, n. y; Peter Blair,
Warren, Mass; Edgar Wilder, st. Adams,
Vt.-21.
Known to be dead.-D. Magnet, Scha-
wenegan, p. O.; NJ r. Burgess, Boston,
Pullman conductor; Mrs. William Devino,
Winooski; Charles Cadieux, Rockville,
Ct.4.
Missing and believed to have been
killed.-Frederick Blair, Warren, Mass. !;
Agnes Rogers, Monroe, n. H.; William
j. Haggerty, Providence, X. l.. Daniel Nc
Donald, Lowell Mass; David Mari, Provi-
dence, r. l.; Pierre Mclean, Holyoke,
Mass.-6.
Reported missing by their friends who fear
they were on the train.-John Stewart New
ark, n. j.; - Connolly, Cavendish, VT;
= Spaulding, Cavendsh, VT; - Brown,
Fitchburg, Mass. Carter Troup, St, Johns
n. B.; j. II. Dady, st. Johns, n B.; p.
Kane, st. Johns, n. b.; George McCarty
st. Johns, n. b.
The known survivors are forty-seven
in number, being twelve uninjured and
thirty-tve injured.